Final Flashcards
How is Canada commonly stratified?
By race and ethnicity
What is the key idea of the Vertical Mosaic?
Visible minorities are more likely to be on the bottom
What factors are our identities made up of?
Individual traits & Community traits
What are some aspect of community?
- though to find anyone without one
- linked to human survival and human genes
- strong in group identity promotes survival
Who is Tajfel?
Famous psychologist who found that it’s natural for humans to create in groups and out groups
What is situationalism?
Situational school of anthropology suggests that we have several communal identities, but the salience of each varies depending on the situation
eg. My Quebecois identity is strengthened when I meet a Francophone Quebecois overseas
Ethnicity and race are two common types of….
communal identity
Define ethnicity and what are some of its important aspects?
Defined as a social group or community based on perceptions of shared culture and background.
Religion, language and origins are some of its important aspects
What is race presently defined as? How does sociology view race?
Defined as a social construct used to distinguish people in terms of one or more physical traits
Sociologists view race largely as non-biological
(Humans define races, not our genes)
What is the social construction of race?
people define race, make it important, not important on its own
What is racialization?
A social process in which groups of people are viewed and judged as essentially different in terms of their intellect, morality, values, and innate worth because of differences of physical type or cultural heritage
Why is race important?
Race is important not because of the physical differences but because of our beliefs that these differences are important
Give an example of the relationship between race and ethnicity
Race=Ethnicity: First Nations are cultural communities
Race≠Ethnicity: Haitian Americans viewed as same race as African Americans but different ethnicity
What are some examples In-Group Impositions ?
Parents and community socialize, emphasize one’s race and ethnicity
eg. Celebrate special holidays, community events
What are some examples of Out-Group Impositions?
Non-members emphasize ethnic/racial difference during interactions
eg. Discrimination promotes strong community identity
What is the main idea in the article by Walton “My Secret Life as a Black Man”?
-Demonstrates both in-group and out-group imposition of racial identity
-He wants to be himself—an intelligent man who loves the arts
-Everyone—both blacks and whites—emphasizes his blackness in his daily interactions
-As a result, he can’t help but think of himself as black
It’s imposed on him
In what year did the idea of multiculturalism come to Canada and what did it entail?
Began in 1971-
- Respects cultural differences
- Opposed to Assimilation—suggests there is no real ‘Canadian’ and people don’t need to assimilate
What are some problems Weinfeld expresses with multiculturalism?
-Communal vs. Individual Rights: Respecting culture sometimes means disregarding individual rights
Suggests not all communities are equal
-Maintaining some degree of Integration: can’t just have separate communities here in Canada
-Ethnic Match: culturally sensitive public services
What is ethnic mobilization?
commonly forces dominant communities to address pass discrimination, to recognize present ethnic inequalities
eg. Civil Rights Movement in the US
What did colonialism do to Aboriginal people?
Colonialism and white settlement marginalized Aboriginal Canadians, isolated them and made them have lesser privileges
What is the main idea of de Leeuw et al. article?
-Article considers health inequalities
Suggests that colonial geographies have hindered the health of First Nations peoples in at least two ways
(1) Isolation: Reserves are so very isolated, don’t have health care system
Access: People can’t get needed health care
(2) Alienation: discriminated against, don’t feel comfortable off the reserves and in hospitals
Causes people to avoid health care
History of reserves linked to health inequalities
What are some examples of how the Canadian Government made a concerted effort to destroy Aboriginal cultures and impose ‘western’ cultures?
- residential schools
- killed inuit sled dogs
What were some of the effects of residential schools?
Abuse: Nearly all students experienced physical and sexual abuse at the schools
Human Guinea Pigs: Experimental medical and nutritional tests performed on many students
Neglect: Residential schools neglected kids, caused them to be raised in environments without love
Alienation: Not accepted by whites because of race, alienated from their culture
-intergenerational effects
This treatment contributed to mental illness and substance abuse among many
True or false? The founding figures of sociology largely ignored gender and sexuality
True
Who was Harriet Martineaux?
often considered the first female sociologist
Studied a number of things, especially gender inequality
What are some examples of gendered differences?
occupations (construction vs. nursing), Activities (hunting vs. sewing), Appearances (baseball cap vs. makeup), Colors (Blue vs. Pink), Attitudes (aggressive vs caring), Foods (steak vs. salad)
What are some ways we can view sex on a continuum?
Intersexed: Ambiguous genitalia
Body Alterations: complete and partial sex changes (transsexual)
What are some ways we can view gender on a continuum?
Androgyny: Individual behavior rarely completely coincides with one gender, considerable variation
Cross Dressing: People dress contrary to norms
Sexuality: Some people are bisexual, some homosexual
Transgendered: Accept gender that is different from their sex but don’t try to transform body
Sex and gender do not coincide
What do people risk to be called when blurring the line of gender norms and what does it force them to do?
Deviant: Most cultures try to maintain clear distinction between men and female, view blurring as “dangerous”
How was homosexuality first legalized in Canada?
With the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1968-9: which legalized sodomy among consenting adults
How do biologists (nature) view gender debates?
-Physiological and hormonal differences affect us
How do sociologists view the gender nature vs nurture debate?
-Recognize biological elements:
We aren’t blank slates, obvious biological differences between males and females
-But also has disagreement with Biology: Main disagreement is when the biological perspective suggests gendered social structures are determined by genes
Genes-based argument overly deterministic about gendered social behaviour
Sociologists believe that there is no Universal Gender: Differences in gender between societies, differences in gender over time
How do sociologists recognize the importance of nurture in the gender debate?
Sociologists emphasize how socialization promotes gender differences
What did Erving Goffman say about gender?
focused on how we are socialized to play different gender roles
Life is like a stage: we assume a role, use a script that helps the audience know who we are supposed to be
Gender is among the most important roles we play
Props: we are socialized to use a variety of props to play our roles convincingly
What does West & Zimmerman say about gender?
Agree with Goffman but believe he overlooks the interactive nature of gender
“Doing”: Suggest that gender is something that is constantly ‘done’ in our interactions with others
Interactive: Gender is ‘done’ through interaction
Audience isn’t passive, it forces you to change script
If someone’s gender is questioned, they’ll change script to assert gender more strongly
What are some examples of how gender is stratified in Canada?
Women earn about a quarter less than men
Women are burdened with more household work
Women are underrepresented in positions of authority
25 % of MPs are women
Women are overrepresented among victims of violence
What is the biological view as to why gender inequalities exists?
The biological perspective suggests that the greater physical strength and aggressiveness of men allow them to dominate women
